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Wetlands

Regional Information
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See also: Regional Wetlands Activities & Issues Archive

Wetlands "Where You Live"

EPA Regions ensure that Clean Water Act protections are implemented "where you live." To accomplish this we work with the Army Corps of Engineers and other Federal, State and local resource agencies in Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Ohio and Wisconsin. One of our States, the State of Michigan, has assumed the wetlands regulatory program. Region 5 States vary widely in wetland acres lost, from Minnesota (9.28 out of 18.6 million acres remaining) to Illinois (90 percent of 8.2 million acres lost).

Wetlands in our Region are unique to the climate, geology and ecosystems of the Upper Midwest. Below are examples of wet meadows, prairie potholes, vernal pools, forested swamps and bottom land hardwoods, shrub swamps, mangrove swamps, northern bogs and Fens. Take a tour of Region 5 States to learn more.

Region 5 Wetland Tour exit EPA

Indiana Virtual Wetland Tour (video tours)
Illinois Wetland Community Descriptions
St. John's Wet Prairie, Michigan
Dead Stream Swamp, Michigan
Dickenson Island/Harsen's Island Great Lakes Marshes
Minnesota Wetlands to Visit (Check out podcasts and photo albums).
Ohio Wetland History and Types
Wetlands of Wisconsin
Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge

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Wetlands Regulation and Enforcement

EPA uses a variety of enforcement and compliance activities to protect and repair illegally-impacted Wetlands. The Region shares this responsibility with the District Offices of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and reviews proposed permits for dredging and filling wetlands that result in unavoidable losses. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers administers the day-to-day program, develops policy and guidance, and enforces Section 404 provisions, See the Office of Watersheds and Wetlands for more on EPA Wetland responsibilities.

Wetland Regulatory Contacts

The following is a list of the Army Corps of Engineers Offices and other regulatory contacts for wetlands by State:

Illinois exit EPA

The following five District Offices of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have wetlands permit jurisdiction within the State of Illinois: Additional useful contacts in the State of Illinois are:

Indiana exit EPA

The following three District Offices of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have wetlands permit jurisdiction within the State of Indiana: An additional useful contact in the State of Indiana is:

Michigan exit EPA

The following two District Offices of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have wetlands permit jurisdiction within the State of Michigan: An additional useful contact in the State of Michigan is:

Minnesota exit EPA

The following two District Offices of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have wetlands permit jurisdiction within the State of Minnesota: Additional useful contacts in the State of Minnesota are:

Ohio exit EPA

The following four District Offices of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have wetlands permit jurisdiction within the State of Ohio: An additional useful contact in the State of Ohio is:

Wisconsin exit EPA

The following three District Offices of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers have wetlands permit jurisdiction within the State of Wisconsin: An additional useful contact in the State of Wisconsin is:

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Contacts

EPA Wetlands Helpline

Peter Swenson
(swenson.peter@epa.gov)		 Watersheds and Wetlands Branch Chief 312-886-0236
Wendy Melgin
(melgin.wendy@epa.gov)
 Deputy Branch Chief for Wetland Programs 312-886-7745
Greg Carlson
(carlson.greg@epa.gov)
 Wetland Technical Enforcement Expert 312-886-0124
Janice Cheng
(cheng.janice@epa.gov)
 Section 401 Coordinator, Wetland Biologist 312-353-6424
Sue Elston
(elston.sue@epa.gov)
 Wetland Coordinator 312-886-6115
Catherine Garra
(garra.catherine@epa.gov)		 Wetland Biologist 312-886-0241
Melissa Gebien
(gebien.melissa@epa.gov)		 Wetland Enforcement Environmental Scientist 312-886-6833
Wayne Gorski
(gorski.wayne@epa.gov)		 Wetland Enforcement Specialist/ Quality Assurance Contact 312-886-0140
Melanie Haveman
(haveman.melanie@epa.gov)		 Environmental Scientist 312-886-2255
Scott McWhorter
(mcwhorter.scott@epa.gov)		 Wetland Enforcement 312-886-6100
Andrea Schaller
(schaller.andrea@epa.gov)		 Life Scientist 312-886-0746
David Schulenberg
schulenberg.david@epa.gov)		 Wetland Enforcement Expert 312-886-6680
Yvette Shiu
(yvette.shiu@epa.gov)		 Environmental Scientist 312-886-2939
Kerryann Weaver
(weaver.kerryann@epa.gov)		 Life Scientist 312-353-9483
Dean Winn
(winn.gerald@epa.gov)		 Agriculture Program Contact 312-886-2777
Yone Yu
(yu.yone@epa.gov)		 Wetland Enforcement Specialist/Life Scientist 312-886-2260

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Wetlands Protection Development Grants in Region 5

In the past, Region 5 has awarded over $1M in wetlands grants. Activities funded address a range of activities to advance State wetland protection including the use of biocriteria for wetlands, wild rice research and expanded floristic quality indices. Administrative refinements include evaluating the effectiveness of compensatory mitigation, several wetland assessment and monitoring methodologies, State program refinements and several significant staff training efforts.


2010 Request for Proposals
Detailed information on the FY'2010 Region 5 Request for Proposals for the Wetland Program Development Grants may be found at Water Program Funding, then Competitive Funding, or through Grants.gov.

Information on the 5-Star Wetland Restoration (Grant) Program can be found on the EPA Office of Water home page.

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Education

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